The Trump administration says Native Americans might need to get a job if they want to keep their health care — a policy that tribal leaders say will threaten access to care and reverse centuries-old protections.

As a threat to tribal sovereignty, the Trump administration is attempting to strip American Indians and Alaska Natives from health care.

Politico reported Sunday, the Trump administration says Native Americans might need to get a job if they want to keep their health care.

“Tribal leaders want an exemption from new Medicaid work rules being introduced in several states, and they say there are precedents for health care exceptions. Native Americans don’t have to pay penalties for not having health coverage under Obamacare’s individual mandate, for instance.” reports Politico

“But the Trump administration contends the tribes are a race rather than separate governments, and exempting them from Medicaid work rules — which have been approved in three states and are being sought by at least 10 others — would be illegal preferential treatment,” the article continues.

The tribes insist that any claim of “racial preference” is moot because they’re constitutionally protected as separate governments, dating back to treaties hammered out by President George Washington and reaffirmed in recent decades under Republican and Democratic presidents alike, including the Clinton, George W. Bush and Obama administrations.

“The United States has a legal responsibility to provide health care to Native Americans,” said Mary Smith, who was acting head of the Indian Health Service during the Obama administration and is a member of the Cherokee Nation. “It’s the largest prepaid health system in the world — they’ve paid through land and massacres — and now you’re going to take away health care and add a work requirement?”Source

then pay the rent on the lands you occupy & add to that compensation & add to that royalties for all the resources stolen from those lands & uphold the Treaties (contracts) your previous leaders agreed to & signed & at least try to be a little honourable after the ethnic cleansing & genocide your history of Administrators inflicted on the Original Tribes of Turtle Island - Trump that Trump

Here are a few facts: The 3 Federally recognized Cherokee Tribal groups do not have full Treaty rights for one simple reason, as individuals they wish to also be U.S. citizens, therefore they are dual citizens and therefore they are taxable as individuals on a Federal level, but as a Tribal State under U.S. CODE 26 7871 they could be exempt from State taxes but being U.S. citizens they have to pay Federal taxes if they are dual citizens. The BIA Tribal groups would have to assert their proper Treaty Nation name and proper status, and Treaty date, and then assert U.S. CODE 28 1604 and pull out of BIA, and repatriate, and return to their proper status if they intend to be totally non-taxable as a Nation and in order to protect themselves as individual citizens of their Tribal Nation only and relinquish their SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER and renounce their citizenship to the United States of America. for example, people who are full-fledged citizens of the Federally acknowledged Cherokee "Treaty" Nation being Cherokee Nation of Indians Treaty of 1791, are also considered Cherokee "Treaty Indians" if they've taken a pledge and oath of citizenship and have renounced U.S. Citizenship. And according to the IRS we are "exempt by virtue of an existing Treaty, and no exemption number needed", therefore we are non-taxable by treaty. And here is another issue: U.S. Department of State 1963 Handbook on International Law, "Everyone must abide by the laws of the Country they reside in". Therefore you must acknowledge that "Indian Country" for you in your area by Treaty like "Kiowa Country", or "Pueblo Country", or "Dahcotah Sioux Country", or Tuscarora Country", or Mohawk Country", or "Onondaga Country", or "Dine' Navajo Country", or "Cherokee Country" which is stipulated for us in the Treaty of 1791 article IX. where a passport is required before entering into Cherokee Country, so please do the same thing as we have done, in order to protect the families of your respective Tribal Nation and Country. Sgi Wado Aho, please see map of Indian Country(s) on facebook

Fuck that!!! No we are sovereign self determined nations within a settler nation. We are not a race we are tribal members. Respect our sovereignty!! Dump trump!! This is modern day ethnic cleaning, genocide and institutional racism! We need to fight this! I am from the Diné nation and we demand that Amerikkka recognize they would not be here without our land, our resources and our treaties! We will not allow for the categorization of a racialized identity when we are political identities and tribally sovereign entities.We will fight this, we will not allow for any more settlers to kill us, our sacred sites & our relatives!!!

Citizen members of Treaty Nations are separate sovereign Governments by evidence of a Treaty, we don't use Social Security numbers,....so sorry, but you are wrong Seema Verma, administrator with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services . Lol

This inappropriate individual undederstands nothing but his own "wonderfullness"...I fully support Indigenous rights as established in historical treaties.Keep on keeping on....this history has not yet been fully written.

i believe the solution to this problem is that we need to get the land that the goverment promised with treaties and end this current system because right now we technically don't own the land that we live in and once we do that we stop the dependency from the US Gov and start our own business,schools, because as long as we get one cent from the Fed, they own us

if you can't uphold the treaties made here in America with the Native Americans how can you expect to sign treaties with other nations like Korea Russia they just won't believe you Trump Japan China and other nations and expect them to abide by your treaties

this trump should go back too his own country and leave Natives us alone man ever since he got in he really thinks he can just take completely over the whole world must be his old age getting the best of him his wife is way too beautiful for him lol.

I agree with "Unknown"above. Treatises signed, whether in the 18th, 19th,20th, centuries should be honored. If he thinks the treaties with the USA are nothing to worry about then I'm sure other countries around the world will take a second look at him and his narcissistic signatures that he proudly displays like he was a king.

What a load of Buffalo dung, we're all people of the world shaped by our local history into one homogeneous tribe. Get over this "I deserve more respect because my forebears were here first. It's history, nothing more.

I am not American Indian but I do have a question for those of you who are. Why don't the tribes apply to be states within the Federal Government instead of independent nations? States have powerful rights equal with the Federal Government and the citizens are covered by the Bill of Rights as well.

Stephanie; You have no idea what you're asking. Just research for your answer if you're truly interested. Trump is going full speed on his threat and promise to get even. He threatened he would get even with Native Americans and he's trying his best to fulfill his vendetta. They refused him a piece of the Casino pie, and he lost his shit. He tried to open his own Casino and it failed,...pretty much like his University. He started with DAPL, and will carry on until he can do brutal and excessive damage.

vengeance politics. here's the possible worst scenario - the admin accepts the claim of sovereignty and rejects any responsibility to fund the welfare of a sovereign nation - i.e., you're on your own, kiddos. we'll build walls around the res.but i don't think that would really get any traction in congress.

This man is running way too fast the wrong direction, He is for only the rich, and I'll never know why he concentrates on the little guy's. Well maybe soon we can wave goodby. As he springs off on his silver spoon.

AM am not ashamed to be an American citizen. But I am very ashamed of the POTUS, Donald Trump. Even before he got into office, he propagated and promoted hate, ignorance, oppression, and blatant lies. He publicly mocked a disabled man; he publicly derided a Gold Star military family; he has publicly labeled immigrants as thieves, rapists, murders, terroists; he refuses to differentiate between civil rights groups and white supremacists; his man-child narcissistic behaviors are legend of the worst kind. His policies and agenda are clearly to favor the wealthy, the mega-corporations, the insurance industry, and big pharma. In the checkered history of our country, he has proven himself to be the most divisive POTUS ever. s history.

I don't know who "Anonymous," was that posted sovereign Natives from Sovereign Federally Recognized Tribes don't have social security numbers and we need to rescind our US citizenship to be recognized is an idiot. Read a book on Federal Indian law before you start spewing your assume assine comments.

How the FU€|《 are most even with disability supposed to do that you FU€|《ed up man even with surgeries that messed up some cant stay up long hours an overtime not even many jobs in villages should come up an build more for them to work those that dont want to leave the village or like the polluted azz cities

The jobs are scarce on the reservations. But since he doesn't live on one, how would he know? He could use his money to create jobs. Not all Natives get money from their tribe. The Navajo Nation and Cheyenne River Sioux tribes don't. Let us ones that don't get a per capita (an allotted amount of money) keep ours.

Uh, you say jobs are scarce on the reservations, you can leave the reservation and get a job. You aren't forced to stay there. Lot's of Native Americans leave the reservation and live elsewhere. I have to agree with the above statement, if you are wanting to be a separate nation then you should pay for your own healthcare. It's the 21st century and it's rough for everybody. Time to break some of your traditions and embrace the suck all of us live with. Crappy jobs and even crappier healthcare.

The problem is that tribes nation uphold the oath to protect nature for over abusing resources, I believe in the mutual respect for nature and the importance to maintain a balance for a continuous development. The agreement between nature and us as society has been always on the question. The truth that society has never been exempt to evolution and even that we all want peaceful, decent, and gracious lives. We must not forget that without our resources, simply economy will be a fiction to humanity. . As the paper we have given so much value over own resources and wisdom. We as society we not only have a responsibility within our future but also with nature. Were we all are part life. Even tho I can understand that society agreements and regulations have to be met in order for our economic system to function we must not forget, What is really the price, We as society willing to invest to take us to next level? What will happen if we don't make it? As corporations we have the responsibility to invest in our communities so we can empower more sustainable and responsible businesses. Please empower and research those companies that care for society and with that you will be investing for greater future.

trumpty trying to rewrite history, tuh! There is a reason we are sovereign our ancestors were slaughtered for our lands, treaties signed and broken�� Race, my ass, we are the first true people and the REAL united states government knows this! Someone educate this ninny and all ninnies who think otherwise! History "is what it is!!!!!!!".

I continually see pictures of Native Americans in poverty. Are they allowed to be this way because they are allowed to live as they want? I question this style of government. Yes, in America's failure also. Is it wise to have a society that does not work at/for something?

For the people who feel that this is a cut and dried sovereign peoples don't get medicaid meant for US citizens issue, try to remember the miles and miles of roadways that US citizens drive on every year that are maintained by the indigenous populations without the financial resources that states and communities come by from the federal government. This is a complex issue; don't try to reduce it to a sound bite.

Trump does not have a clue as to the identity of an indigenous people and what a sovereign nation is. Remember, this is the same idiot who said when the protests were happening at Standing Rock that Native American Indians needed to go back to India. Trump is unfit to hold office as are those legislators that support him.

He's been dissing Native Americans for a long time; especially their casinos.I just realized, if Native Americans lose their sovereign nation status, they would likely lose their rights to have casinos, which have been very helpful to the members of a numbers of tribes.My wife worked for the Oklahoma employment agency ( Workforce Oklahoma) for over 20 years. She said the Indian casinos employ more Oklahomans than any other industry. This could be devastating.

Ok so what is your response if this president breaks the treaties. The American Indian Movement should have a response to this. This should be a Call To Action. Petitions and peaceful protests have very little impact.

Wow so the orange man want's to strip us natives of health care even though it was them who invaded our land slaughtered our people enslaved us and nearly brought us to extinction and he thinks its ok to just try and do that i think not.

The Orangutan Lookin' MotherF***** has surpassed his Legitimacy as a, so called 'Leader'. Obviously, his concept of History does not go further than his bottomline & of his misaligned BBC(Billionaire Boys Club).

Other countries know our American Indian history better than our own country. Honoring a treaty is paramount in law universally. Looking at the broken treaties in the past in the U.S. With the tribal nations leaves doubt of mistrust by the other countries . Now we are witnessing a total denial of our treaties, sovereignty and human rights. Saving face, as a country, does not exist for there is no true justice, with the exception of going through United Nations forum.

The Greed of the "white eyes" never ends, I am outraged by this action they are trying to engage in. What a sorry excuse for an Administration, Republicans are evil the leader of the evil goes under the name of TRUMPF ONE WORD FOR HIM GF